Every King Needs a Queen
by Rantzilla
Summary: HIATUS. Focusing on NaruSasu. May delete! I hardly ever finish my OC stories, sorry to those who reviewed!
1. Fairy Tales are for People with Free Acc

This is my first story ever! On Fanfiction, anyway. If it sucks, feel free to punch me in my E-face. I am open to ANY suggestions you have. Seriously, I feed off constructive criticism. Do you _**want**_ me to starve? Just kidding. I love you? ...Want a cookie? You can have one. AFTER you read. I realize this is a boring first chapter. Especially since there is no Strawhat goodness yet. But soon. Oh yes, very soon. NEXT CHAPTER ACTUALLY. That I already have typed. I MEAN WHUT. Ahem. Anyway. This fanfic was written for me and my best friend originally. Though, there may be more of my friends in the story later. -cough- EMI -cough.- Sorry, I'm gettin' down with a sickness. Yes, you probably hate me for making long introductions, and I won't blame you if you already left. This story may turn out as fluffy and cuddly and romance...y as the Disney Princess movies, or it may turn out as crappy as the Twilight novels. (HEH you hate me now, don'tcha?) Luckily, I have God. Though I doubt God can stop me from publishing a horribly terrible chapter. OH WELL. ENOUGH WITH MY LONGER-THAN-NEEDED PRATTLE. ON TO THE STORY. Oh, and I'll try to make the intros shorter in future chapters. ...Maybe... If you're lucky... **SO. **Without further ado... I present to you... The corniest title on planet Earth... Every King Needs a Queen. Sit back, relax, and remember **NO SMOKING IN THE THEATER. **Dammit, Sanji!

**Every King Needs a Queen**

**Chapter 1: **Fairy Tales are for People with Free Access to Food

Once upon a time…

There lived a childish teen in a run-down shack on the west shore of a loud and boring town. Said shack was unusually surrounded by untold amounts of dead grass, plants, and trees- withered away to a gray color. Awaiting restlessly for the day for her dream to come true, and facing starvation and dehydration day in and day out in order to achieve said dream. Not including the aching feeling in her heart that could only be described as longing for a friend, or at least someone that would accept her.

A beginning like 'once upon a time' is complete and utter bullshit in her sad and sorry life.

When the girl was still barely eight, she had enough knowledge of the city in which she resided beside to know exactly who and where to steal from. Though, on one unusual day, she peeked out of a dark alley, watching as pirates were chased around town by angry civilians- the leader clutching a small chest securely to his front-side. Seeing how close they were getting, the abandoned eight year-old ran to the back of the alley, hiding behind a particularly foul-smelling barrel.

She watched in shocked silence as the sole pirate leader turned abruptly into her alley, tripped over his own feet, and watched in horror as his precious chest landed unceremoniously on the ground- bouncing once before cracking open . The sound of splitting wood echoed noisily off the walls of the shadowed passageway- and the contents of the chest was revealed.

The pre-teen frowned, watching the mysterious fruit roll harmlessly towards her. But looked back at the pirate, as his voice rung out loudly in a petrified shriek.

"No! Put me down! Down I say! Let go of me, filthy fools! I'll kill you all! P-put me _**down!**_"

The man was dragged by his ankles- nails clawing at the dirty ground- eyes staring fixedly at the small portion of food. Eyes wide and full of desperation- he continued crying out blind insults and thrashing his lower body around violently in an attempt to escape the two large men's clutches. With no such luck, he disappeared completely around the corner of the alley- but his futile yells were still heard when he had long disappeared from the girl's eyes.

Blinking twice- the girl took the incentive to move again, venturing slowly to the still fruit. Picking it up and examining it- she wondered what harm a small piece of food such as this could do to a person. And with one fleeting look at a place where scratch marks trailed the ground in a thin line toward the entrance- she brought back her arm to launch the troublesome fruit far from her person.

Her mind changed completely as her stomach growled.

And that was all the encouragement she needed to sit down and start devouring the fruit eagerly.

Which is where her adventure initially took off.

Upon discovering her abilities- thievery seemed mere child's play to a person who could easily fit under the space between door and floor.

Also- she no longer had a problem with dehydration.

But she knew, having a strange ability wasn't going to always save her- which is why she trained with it. To learn more about this gift- and to control it to be unstoppable, invincible, if you will.

Which is where the 'training' bit of her life came in. Knocking out civilians came easily to the teen now- almost as easy as stealing. The number of opponents that challenged her had thinned now- to a small drizzle (excuse the pun). Her infamy had finally spread to the opposite ends of Ioay Town- meaning harsher battles now- but this did not faze the fast-growing girl- only strengthened her greatly. She was almost grateful to the brave souls that dared challenge her now, but it was mixed with pity.

Though lately, there had been absolutely no opponents whatsoever- which is why she was itching for a tough fight- which was abnormal since she normally hated fighting- but she definitely needed **something **to get her mind off food. The townsfolk had finally gotten smart- and set sponges out on their doormats.

'Damn heartless people- do they even care if an orphan starves to death anymore?' thought our brave yet agitated adventurer one dry morning- after trying and failing to snag a bite to eat from town.

Her stomach growled hungrily- loud enough to put a small dog to shame.

"I'm so hungry!" She groaned audibly.

* * *

Not too far off, another hero of our story was having almost the exact troubles as our previous young teen.

'Flying through the air for two days with no food can take a toll on _**anyone's **_stomach.' Thought a certain dark chocolate-haired boy bitterly with an irritated eyebrow twitch.

"Ossu," he mumbled softly, sitting up from the paw-shaped ditch that he had mysteriously landed himself in not three seconds before.

The young teen took in his surroundings carefully, down to the last dead plant next to the deteriorating and dejected-looking wooden shack.

"That stupid cyborg _would_ send me to a dead island. Where in the hell am I?" spat the boy in complete agitation.

His stomach moaned noisily, and he looked down at disapprovingly.

"And why am I so damn hungry?" he paused and frowned, glancing one more around the area, before spotting what he was looking for.

"A little meditation will help to keep my mind off things for awhile. I'll think about food later, ossu" said the boy, standing with yet another "ossu" as he sauntered over to some large rocks situated not too far away on a small patch of sand.

* * *

The teen made her way begrudgingly 'home.' _'If that piece of shit could be considered a home.' _Her head drooped noticeably as she continued to drag herself toward her shack on the beach.

She froze in her tracks- her eyes trailing to a place above the boulders near her abode. They came to rest on a boy, whose legs were crossed in a meditative manner, hands resting in his lap, and eyes closed. A new face near her shelter- a new opponent. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, what was he doing here?

A smirk played on the lips of the masked teen- and she decided to play a trick on the unsuspecting boy. Slowly, very slowly, she crept onto the boulder he was resting on. The boy detected no signs of another human presence, and before her breathing became too noticeable, her bandaged hands launched out from under the poncho and pushed the poor soul into the crashing waves of the ocean.

The sombrero-bearing girl laughed as the boy landed in the depths below, a shocked look plastered to his pale face. She sat cross-legged in his place, before grinning at him from her perch.

Her face was immediately painted over with surprise as she looked on to the flailing boy in the water.

"YOU," there was a pause as his face submerged, before reappearing at the surface of the water, "BASTARD!"

At that statement, the surprise morphed into that of complete awe. She had never met another Devil's fruit user before!

So, without a second thought, she held out her arm, turned the palm upwards, and lifted it up. An unusual action, to the untrained eye.

But had that eye turned to the sea, it would have widened in awe as a bubble of water arose from the ocean, with a trapped and shirtless boy floating motionlessly inside.

The girl's eyes narrowed again, the smile disappearing completely from her face as her wrist jerked suddenly, causing the bubble of water to launch toward the shore and explode, sending the dark-haired boy tumbling across the hot sands of the beach.

The water Devil's fruit user rested her chin neatly in the palm of her hand, her elbow sitting on the side of her knee. She watched with a small smirk as the boy coughed and choked up water, before looking around wildly until their eyes met.

"You nearly drowned me!" He said in a high octave, pointing an accusing finger at the person staring at him from his recent perch on the rock.

"Correction: I saved your sorry drowning ass," she said smoothly, in a noticeably low-enough-to-be-mistaken-for-a-male's voice.

"That doesn't change the fact that you pushed me in there in the first place, OSSU," he fumed angrily.

"Hey, you were the one on my rock," the girl said with an obvious chuckle.

"I don't see your name on it, ossu" said the boy, crossing his arms and sticking his tongue out.

The humor from her previous statement forgotten, she cocked an eyebrow. Of course, he didn't see, it was a habit.

There was a short pause, one in which the boy seemed to be mulling things over in his head, and not noticing that the other person had opened their mouth to speak, he pointed another accusing finger at the water user and exclaimed:

"YOU'RE A DEVIL'S FRUIT USER! OSSU!"

At this, the female teen face-palmed.

"Are you seriously that slow," she started, facing him again, "or are you just that stu…" pausing in her insult, the girl examined the boy's face. The air between them had noticeably tensed. The other teen's bangs obscured his eyes from view, and from his now standing position with finger still pointed at the shocked girl- she studied his mouth for any sign of emotion. And found none. Frowning at his sudden change of mood, she crossed her arms and huffed.

"If you're trying to scare me, that's _not_ going t-"

She cut herself off- realizing that her still crossed legs had left solid rock. Eyes widening in shock- she spun around wildly in midair- turning to see the boulder she had just been sitting upon getting farther away from her as she soared involuntarily through the air.

Stopping suddenly with a jolt- she cursed under her breath, making a mad grab for the sombrero that was now floating delicately toward to ground- landing right at the other male's feet. She paused in her struggle to break free, watching the boy now, warily.

The shirtless male slowly raised his head- menacingly, threateningly- with a look that could only be described as, well, emotionless. To someone else, he may have seemed bored with the situation, to a certain water user- he looked void of emotion. He continued lifting up his head- until eventually their eyes met. Only faltering a second after seeing she had long, red hair that was now dangling around her in curtains- the boy examined her face.

Arms crossed and chin jutted out defiantly, she wanted nothing but to kick his ass.

"This is my Devil's fruit power- the 'psychic' fr-"

A large amount of water splashed him in the face mid-speech, and he was left with a fish flailing its tail with its head in his mouth.

"Don't care."

He spat out the fish and glared daggers at the floating girl- whose eyes were now closed.

"Put me down."

It was a simple request- one that he refused to meet.

"Are you not listening?! I said put me-"

At that moment- she was slammed unceremoniously into the ground before being brought back to her original position.

"_**Ow!!!**_"

"That's what you get."

"You're acting like a child!"

"**Me?!**"

She rubbed her temples in frustration. And then got an idea.

"If anyone is being childish here, it's **you.**"

"_If anyone is being childish here, it's __**you.**_"

The boy mocked her.

Another huge wave hit him- only this time it stayed around him- and he was left in the bubble again.

"Behave," she said, "or I'll have to drown you."

His arm moved inside the water- causing her to drop onto the ground with a winded "oof." Which-in turn- caused the bubble of water to dissipate and the boy inside to fall on his back on the ground.

After a silence in which the boy panted and coughed and the girl stayed frowning on her back- an odd sound erupted from the both of them. And in the same simultaneousness- two voices cried out wearily.

"I'm so hungry!"

* * *

After a quick robbing of a few choice stores- courtesy of the psychic boy- they were set out on the beach once again- munching loudly on their finds.

A short pause filled with the crunching and chewing of various foods was cut off by the cautious voice of the boy.

"Where am I?"

She glanced up at him suspiciously.

"Don't you know?"

"No."

"There's no harm in telling you, I guess… This is Ioay Town."

"Ocean?"

She gave him a strange look.

"Don't you know?"

"No."

She sighed, mumbled 'weirdo,' but told him anyway.

"East Blue."

He choked on the pickle he was eating.

She raised her eyebrows at him, and wondered why on Earth her hunger just had to get the better of her.

"So," she attempted after a short silence in which the male recovered and was now working on a piece of bread, "what's your name?"

The other boy looked up from the buttering of his bread to look at the female across from him.

"Andei, ossu," he answered before turning back to his bread.

"An… day?"

He nodded in reply.

"Boring."

"Oi!"

"Anyway, considering you already know I'm a girl," she stuffed a forkful of tomato in her mouth, "I guessh I'll tell ywoo."

"Tell me _**after **_you chew and swallow, ossu," Andei said, making a disgusted face.

She did what she was told, and opened her mouth to speak again.

"The name's Rose."

"Boring."

"**Oi!**"

"So, you have the power of the water fruit, ossu?"

"Obviously. And the psychic fruit for you?"

"Obviously."

"That is not obvious."

"Yes it is, ossu."

"No, it's not. You had me twirling around in the air, it could have been the _wind _fruit for all I know."

"Well water is a stupid power, ossu."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, rea…"

He got a mouthful of sea water.

"Andei, I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship," Rose said, laughing for the first time in years.

* * *

A short time later, the pair found themselves walking down the beach together.

"So," Rose tried again, hating the silence, "you aren't the talkative type, are ya?"

"I talk when I want to talk."

"Yeah, _that's _a normal response."

"Says the girl that's hiding her gender, ossu."

"Says the boy who keeps saying 'ossu.' And I have good reason to hide my gender!"

"Yeah, what?"

"To become a pirate."

Andei glanced at her, to make sure she wasn't kidding, and found she was dead serious. He sighed and turned his face back forward.

"What is that, your dream?"

"Mhm!"

"Boring."

"**Oi!**"

* * *

After a surprisingly short amount of time- the two had considerably warmed up to each other- laughing and making jokes. This was the most open both of them felt for a long time.

"Ya know," said Rose, smiling, "you're the first person to gain my trust."

"This quickly?"

"No, at all. I have trust problems."

"Hm… I guess you could say I do, but I think it's just because I have trouble warming up to strangers, ossu."

"You warmed up to me pretty well!"

"Yeah, well that's because we were both starving, you couldn't get food yourself, and you knew exactly where to steal food from, ossu."

"Well, if you put it like that…"

Still laughing from something Andei had said- Rose hadn't yet noticed the silence that had washed over her companion.

"Rose…"

At this, she silenced, and looked over at the boy sitting next to her.

He looked at her shortly, before turning back to the ocean, and pointing at the horizon.

Following his finger, she looked where he was looking, and immediately jumped up.

"Andei! Do you see that!"

Jumping up and down on the small dock they had settled on, Rose felt the need to hug something. So, she did.

"Get off."

"Feel special. I haven't hugged anyone in ten years."

"I feel special. Now get off."

"Fine! But only since you found that ship!"

She danced up and down in pure glee, not believing her luck.

"Oh!"

She bent over and picked up her sombrero, placing it on her head and stuffing up her hair.

"This is just so… EE!"

The reason she said 'ee' was because she had fallen ever so ungracefully from the side of the pier.

Sighing, clearly irritated at his new friend's antics, he held up a finger and stopped her in midair.

"Thanks," she said happily, smiling at him.

"Anytime."

He dropped her back on the dock, and she kept her standing position.

Andei stood up as well, and stretched.

"It's a shame, but I don't think I'll be joining you on your little pirate adventure, ossu."

Rose's face fell. In such a short period of time, the boy had grown on her. And it was weird, but it felt like they had been best friends for a long time.

"No."

"Uh, what do you mean 'no?'"

"No means no. You're coming with me."

"Rose," he sighed in an agitated way, "it's your dream not mine, ossu. And besides, what good am I to a pirate crew?"

"It doesn't matter. They won't ask!"

"So, they'll just let us join. No questions asked, ossu."

"Yup!"

"I don't believe that, ossu," he said defiantly- crossing his arms.

"I find it hard to believe, too. But we have to stay optimistic."

"That's impossible for me."

"Well, don't ruin _my _mood."

"Well, _sorry_."

"No harm done," she said smiling. Letting go of the argument, she was in a fantastic mood after all, "so it's settled, you're going?"

"I never said I was, ossu."

"Oh, come on! You have nothing better to do!"

There was a pause.

"It's still a no."

"But-"

"No."

"Ugh. You're impossible."

There was another pause.

"Look, they're really close now," said Rose, practically exploding with excitement.

"Rose," then he paused, thought about something, and looked at her meaningfully, "what are you going to say your name is?"

Her face fell, yet again.

"Uh… um…. Well- er… R..oy?"

She glanced at him hopefully, and he laughed.

"Roy?"

"Well if it's such a bad name, you could just say so!"

"No no no no no no," he said, waving his hands comically in front of his face, "it's fine."

She scowled at her friend, before turning back to the ocean, eyes wide in anticipation.

And then, it all came crashing down.

No, not the pier.

Her excitement, anticipation, all replaced by a different emotion.

The silence of his female friend startled the young teen, and he looked over at her- and froze.

Her eyes- all that you could see from her face- were widened in true terror, shock, and something Andei couldn't place. But to say the least- he was worried.

"Rose…" he started cautiously, "what is it?"

Without answering, she closed her eyes, turned around, and started running.

"**Rose!**"

He stopped her in her tracks.

"**Put me down! Please! **I can't… I.. can't…"

"You can't what?! I thought you wanted to be a pirate, ossu!"

"I do! Just not that ship… Not that ship…"

"Rose, what's wrong with that ship, ossu?"

There was a pause.

"Andei, put me down."

The ship was close now, very close.

Andei sighed. Still concerned, he brought her back to where he was.

The water user was starting to panic.

"If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to, ossu."

Rose turned her head to look at the male, who was now standing in front of her.

"And you obviously don't want to. But, if I were to board the ship with you, would you go?"

There was a second in which she seemed to think about the choice.

"…Fine. But don't expect me to forget this."

"Wouldn't dream of it," said the boy, hiding his smile, "now get ready, here they come."

* * *

**End of Chapter 1.**

Feel free to punch me in the E-face. I really don't mind.


	2. Was it Roy with a Katana on the Poop Dec

Hooray for comedy relief chapters? My attempts at comedy are pitiful, I know. Cut me some slack- I'm no Jerry Seinfeld (BU-DUM CHHH). "GET A JOB!" Yeah so anyway. After the last chapter, I decided to make a stab at humor, considering it's one of the topics. Of course, there will be much more humor! (Don't worry, I'll ask someone else.) But here's my first attempt. Remember: OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS. And punch me in the E-face if I mess up on characterization. I suck at that sorta stuff. I know I promised to not make a full-on rant before every chapter, but look at my pen name :[. It's hard not to!

Andy: That's what she said.

Emma: Thanks, Andy. That's exactly what this chapter needed.

Before you people ask: No, he is NOT my boyfriend, no he is NOT a prostitute, and_ he did not have sex with that woman!_

I forgot to do this last time.

Disclaimer: One Piece is owned by Eiichiro Oda, and is in no way, shape, or form: mine. If it was, no one would love it. D:

* * *

**Every King Needs a Queen**

**Chapter 2: **Was it Roy with a Katana on the Poop Deck?

"**YOOOOOOO~~~!**"

Rose jumped and Andei raised his eyebrows.

A boy no older than Andei jumped off of the deck and onto the pier in front of the pair.

He smiled wide at the two, and Rose let out a long breath of relief.

It was just a coincidence.

Rose stepped forward, much more confident now.

"Who's the captain of this ship?"

Andei hid an amused smile behind a hand, her voice resembled that of a thirteen year-old boy that had yet to hit puberty.

"I am!"

"You?"

"Yup! I'm Monkey D. Luffy. Nice to meet ya!"

"Uh… well… hi. I'm Ros- Uh… I mean… Roy! Yeah, Roy. I'm Roy."

At this, Andei restrained himself from laughing.

Glaring at him, Rose decided to introduce him as well.

"And this is Andei. But he prefers being called 'Twinkle Toes.'"

"I do not," muttered Andei.

"Yeah so, we're here because we wanted to ask you… Can we join your crew?"

"Ok sure."

…

"THAT QUICK?!" yelled Andei and Rose together- jaws dropping comically.

"I won't allow it!" rang another voice.

And from the upper deck, a person jumped down, landing next to Luffy and punching him square in the back of the head- sending him face-first into the dock. Andei and Rose blinked before jumping back in surprise.

"Even if I'm just a co-operator, I have a say in who gets to join this crew. So…"

At this point, she leaned forward with a scary look on her face, Andei and Rose raised simultaneous eyebrows.

"What are your skills?"

They blinked twice, looked at each other, then looked back at the psycho redhead.

"Manual labor."

"Cleaning."

At this- they both burst out laughing. Andei with his 'ossususususususu,' and Rose with her now low, 'hoyoioioioioi.'

* * *

The young navigator stared at the laughing couple in blatant confusion- then she glanced down at her even younger captain. Who- at that moment- chose to shoot up randomly from the ground.

"NAMI! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" Yelled the raven-haired boy at his female friend.

Looking at him and then at the hysterical duet again- she face-palmed and sighed in exasperation.

'Surrounded by idiots.'

The boy named "Roy" stopped laughing and wiped a stray tear from his eye- his companion stopped his chuckles abruptly, realizing he was being watched.

"Oi, you two."

They both snapped their attention back to the redhead.

"You can join on one condition."

There it was again, the raising of the eyebrows.

"Got any Beli?"

"Excuse me?"

"Beli? You know.. money?"

"Nope."

"Sorry."

She growled softly- as they looked far from sorry.

Just then, the loud-mouthed straw hat boy who had been watching the whole exchange jumped up from the ground- somewhat startling the poncho-bearer and receiving a bored look from the silent shirtless one. He smiled wide at them.

"You wanna be pirates? Nami, I say we let them join! I like them!"

"Luffy, you like _everyone._ We shouldn't just pick up random str- LUFFY! ARE YOU LISTENING?"

He obviously was not- considering he was now leading the pair onboard and introducing them to a certain sleeping swordsman and a lying sniper. But he turned at the sound of his name, smiling at her, his eyes closed with the effort.

"Captain's orders, they're joining us! Shishishi!"

Another deep sigh escaped her lips- when the unreasonable captain decided something- it was over.

* * *

After being introduced to a three-sword swordsman and a very unreasonable liar ("I'm the ever so heroic Captain Usopp!!! I have 8,000 followers!!!"), Rose felt she couldn't be surprised by anything anymore. She didn't mind the small crew- in fact- she enjoyed being on a small crew more. Though the captain may be a bit…. dense.

The excitement from earlier having worn off- Rose now found herself alone with a snoozing moss-head and completely bored out of her mind. The four others had set out on a food hunt in town, having run out of their entire stock of meat for reasons Rose had yet to know. So, she was even without her new friend Andei.

Why had Andei gone? Let's just say a navigator of sorts would not have two new crew members alone on the ship with a defenseless first mate. Knowing that I wouldn't want to go- Andei went.

Which left Rose bitterly alone on a new ship. She glanced at the snoring tanned man again, and a devilish smile crossed her lips.

Going to the kitchen she was showed to earlier- Rose dug through the refrigerator in search of something.

"Whipped cream… Whipped cream… Mayonnaise… _Something_…" she mumbled- pushing various objects out of the way. She straightened her back looking slightly disappointed- but her search had not been in vain. In her hand, she carried a thin bottle of ketchup.

She turned around, closed the door with her foot, and walked out of the kitchen accordingly. And voila! The evil smile had returned once she set her eyes on the napping older teen. One hand was laid face-down on his stomach, the other palm-up on his side.

Creeping up slowly- Rose opened the bottle of tomato sauce- or, she tried. The water user stood next to the swordsman- not noticing he had stopped snoring- and tried and failed to open the child-proof condiment.

"Who are you?" came a gruff voice below her.

"HOLY SH-" she nearly screamed- falling back clumsily on her behind, the bottle flying out of her hands, through the air directly at the weary swordsman. Her eyes followed its path motionlessly.

'Oh shit…'

"Eh?" said the older teen- eyes darting up to the now falling ketchup, which was making a point of going straight at his face.

Rose watched on in horror- she was going to get in _trouble. _

In one swift movement, the swordsman had unsheathed one of his three swords, and sliced the poor bottle in two- still sitting _down. _

The contents of the ketchup were still determined to do the job they set out from the fridge to do, however. And as the bottle- now in two parts- separated, the tomato juice slipped out and cascaded down. Can't slice _ketchup,_ can ya? And as it seemed, he could not. The ketchup landed on his chest. Leaving a huge red blotch.

"Phew, that's gonna stain. Sorry, bud, that didn't quite go as planned," said 'Roy,' now standing up and wiping off her poncho, addressing the dumbstruck tanned man.

"You…." he said menacingly, eyebrow twitching, "planned this?"

"Uh… yeah… sorry? I was bored, so…"

"Why are you on this ship? And where is everyone else?"

"Well…" Rose started nervously, then stopped. What was she doing? This was a great opportunity! For a joke- not a fight. "I was hungry, so I ate them."

"I see," he said, lowering his head.

"Eh.." said Rose, blinking twice.

"Well then… I'll just have to cut them out of your stomach, won't I?"

'Eh… Eh.. EH?!?! THIS GUY IS A PSYCHO!'

The teen stood up, unsheathing two of his swords and placing the other in his mouth.

The younger teen watched him in disbelief- before her head lolled to the side with mouth agape and little anime tears running down her face, 'it was just a joke… this guy is crazy!'

"Listen, moss-head. That was a joke, honest! We don't need to fight about i….."

His eyes seemed to shade over demonically.

The swords leapt into action, slicing this way and that, Rose slid back to avoid them, dodging every jab he threw at her almost mechanically, and she still spoke through her dodges.

"Can't we just…" she dodged a sword, sliding to the left and continued backing up, "talk about things?" She ended her question, with another dodge to the right.

He grunted angrily as he showed no intent on stopping.

Rose opened her mouth to speak again. Right when…

'Why me…?'

Her head turned to see the wall she had backed into, then shot back at the advancing moss-head, now with more anime tears streaming down her bandaged cheeks.

She crouched low, planted her feet firmly on the ground… and…

'Closer… closer…. THERE!'

Right on top of her now- the girl leapt suddenly.

"Sorry!" she yelped.

Using the wall to push off of, she rammed headfirst into the stomach of the swordsman who refused to listen- who was unable to block. His three swords clattered noisily to the ground, and he coughed loudly- he continued flying back until he hit the mast of the Going Merry. Rose had already ran back, picked up one of the swords- and was pointing it at his chest, panting heavily.

He looked up at her emotionlessly.

"Gonna kill me?"

"H…Huh?!"

"I said, gonna kill me?"

"No! Why would I?! You just wouldn't listen, stupid!" She paused in her frantic rant. "I'm Roy, by the way. New member of your crew and all."

"Wh… WHAT?! Why didn't you say that earlier?!"

"Like I _said, _you wouldn't listen."

He sighed loudly and sat up, Rose still had the sword pointed at his chest.

"I'm Roronoa Zoro. And you're not half bad- being a runt and all."

"WHO'S A RUNT?! Do you not see this sword I have pointed at you?"

"You're not a swordsman. I can tell."

"Maybe I'm not- that doesn't mean I can't stab people with pointy objects."

"It's not just a pointy object! Those are my KATA-"

"**OIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII~!**"

The two of them paused, and looked to their right- inland.

"Luffy?" said Zoro.

"Zoro? You're up?! You've got to come see this! It's a mystery shack!"

Rose tilted her head. Did he say 'mystery shack?'

"A mystery shack, eh? Sorry, Luffy. I can't go just yet," said the swordsman, smiling crookedly.

"Awwwwwww," whined the voice, which was growing nearer, "why not now?"

"I'm busy."

"With whaaaaaaaaat?"

At this point, the boy launched himself onto the deck of the boat. Rose figured he climbed as he landed perfectly to their right.

They blinked at him. He blinked back. There was an extremely long moment of silence before…

"EH!??!?!!" he shouted, eyes popping out of their sockets and tongue making a sort of wave-like motion.

Rose face-palmed with the hand not holding the sword.

"Is he normally this slow?"

"Normally."

"Great," Rose groaned sarcastically.

"ROY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ZORO?! YOU PSYCHO!" he yelled, pointing at her accusingly.

"Eh? What is he…" she trailed off, assessing the situation.

Her, pointing a sword at Zoro. Zoro, shirt covered in something red and completely defenseless.

"Hm…" she said looking from the sword in her hand to Zoro's shirt.

"EH?!?!!"

"Oi, oi, oi. And you talk about him being slow."

"IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!" said Rose, looking at Luffy.

"Eh? It's not?" he tilted his head, and stuck a finger in his nose. "Then what is it?"

"Well it started when I…" she began frantically, still forgetting to lower the sword, and she froze again when yet another voice rang out, leading to a particularly long-nosed boaster standing next to his captain.

"Luffy! I heard you scream! So the great Captain Usopp came to save y…" he looked over at the scene, and there was another long pause.

"AHHHHHHHHH! R-R-R-R-ROY! I KN-KN-KNEW W-W-W-WE COULDN'T T-T-T-T-TRUST Y-Y-YOU!" screamed Usopp, legs shaking and pointing just as Luffy had.

"YEAH! LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO POOR ZORO!" joined Luffy, pointing at Rose again.

"NO guys you got it all wrong!" yelled Rose, starting to panic. She dropped the sword and didn't wait to watch it clatter to a stop. She lowered her finger to the swordsman's chest, and ran her bandaged finger across a particularly large glob of ketchup.

Without stopping to glance at Usopp or Luffy, she straightened her back and brought the ketchup closer to her open mouth, "you see guys, it's just…" and then she licked it clean off her finger.

Usopp fainted.

The girl turned to Usopp and faintly uttered the word "…ketchup."

Then Luffy was kneeling beside Usopp asking him if he was okay.

"FIRST ZORO! NOW USOPP!" yelled Luffy, turning to the sombrero-wearer once again.

"JUST LISTEN!" she shouted back, then, suddenly angry at the silence of the person that could help her explain, she shot a deadly look at the… "YOU'RE SLEEPING AGAIN?!" bellowed Rose incredulously, "I COULD USE YOUR HELP YOU KNOW!"

"Oi! What's all this noise, ossu?"

Rose recognized the voice immediately.

'Salvation!' thought Rose with more anime tears running down her face.

"AH! TWINKLE TOES! ROY KILLED ZORO AND MADE USOPP FAINT!"

A pale hand planted itself on the side of the ship, before yet another person jumped over the railing and onto the deck, landing with an 'ossu.'

"What's going on?" he asked, eyebrows raised and eyes immediately locking onto Rose's. Then, his eyes darted from the snoozing moss-head, to the stain on his shirt, to the concerned yet misguided captain, to the fainted Usopp, and then back to the distressed friend of his.

"Never mind, I don't care," said Andei, shrugging it off and pushing open the swinging door that leads to the kitchen. Entering without another word, the captain and the newcomer watched the door swing until it finally settled into its original position.

Then there was silence.

* * *

**End of Chapter 2. **

Crappy end to a crappy chapter. DON'T HURT ME FOR MY PESSIMISM. It's not my fault I have low self confidence! Blame my three older siblings. WARNING: The next chapter is BORING. So sorry. And you're not getting another freebie! I already gave you two chapters in one night!

Andy: GOSH EMMA YOU'RE BEING SO STINGY.

Emma: I DID NOT TYPE THE THIRD CHAPTER. -Clings to third chapter papers.-

Andy: Then what's that?

Emma: It's my already typed alternate beginning- one NOT including, _you._

Andy: ...

Emma: Yeah, that's what I thought.

* * *


	3. Why do Grandmothers Insist Upon Telling

As requested by LuffyxRuby, aka my first reviewer EVER, I updated sooner than I expected. HOWEVER. This comes with a price! I have not yet typed up chapter 4! Because a certain friend of mine introduced me to a new manga/anime called "Shaman King."

Andy: Addicting you to things is fun.

Emma: SHUT UP WHILE I CONTINUE MY INTRODUCTION.

Anyway, as many of you may know, it's hard to put a good manga down when you start reading it. So, I'm estimating at least another THREE DAYS before an update. Oh and...

Emma: -Gives LuffyxRuby a cookie.- Don't hate me for this boring chapter? ;_;

Andy: Oh please, it's hopeless. No one is going to want to read after this chapter.

Emma: DON'T TEST MY PATIENCE, MISTER. Just because you're in this chapter for like two seconds. D: And feel special, this was originally the entire story of Rose, but as I decided the chapter was extremely boring with the whole history thing- I extended it to include another half-assed attempt at comedy. Don't kill me?

Oh, and if you're wondering, the plot is currently set between episodes 18 and 19 of the anime series (I'm using the anime and not the manga). So the next thing is getting Sanji. I WILL NOT GET FANGIRL-EY IN THIS FANFIC. IF I DO, PLEASE TELL ME.

Andy: -Looks up from manga.- Good _lord_, woman. Could you just get on with the story? It's already boring enough without you ranting again.

Emma: I'll get you for this later. You're one of the characters in my story, remember? I can make you do ANYTHING I WANT. I COULD PAIR YOU WITH NAMI!

Andy: D: D: D:

Emma: Kekeke. Well, anyway. One Piece does not belong to me, it is property of the wonderful Eiichiro Oda. If it WAS mine... Well, people would put bears in my mailbox. Let's leave it at that.

**Every King Needs a Queen**

**Chapter 3: **Why do Grandmothers Insist Upon Telling Pointless Stories?

Nami was in a good mood today.

And that is saying a lot for a person of her character.

She was glad to be separated from the idiotic crew she decided to follow around, and for once, she was enjoying herself.

Luffy had gone off to explore, Usopp mumbled something about checking on Luffy, and that weird Andei kid had a bad feeling or something. But, of course, Nami had no need to worry today. They weren't her problem right now.

Nothing could ruin her fabulous mood! Shopping, enjoying the sun, and no dolts to follow her around to bother her! Today was perfect!

Well, until she got shot at.

That could ruin anyone's mood really.

Nami froze in her tracks, eyes wide in fear.

When she needed them, of course they weren't there!

She made a mental note to pummel them later.

Whispers erupted from the townsfolk.

"Next one won't miss, _Rose,_" spoke a ragged voice above the crowd.

'Rose,' thought Nami, turning slowly to meet the voice, 'who is that?'

The whispers were getting louder and more frantic, as a few people started backing away from her.

"Seriously?"

"Is that her?"

"That can't be her. Doesn't she have red hair?"

"She is a redhead."

"No _red _hair."

Nami dropped her shopping bags as the pistol wielded by a tall man with long, sleek black hair pointed at her forehead.

"So you've finally decided to show your face, eh?" the street grew quiet at the sound of the loud voice.

"I… I don't know you! I'm… I'm a traveler!" said Nami, finally finding her voice, though it shook in fear.

The whispers started again.

"Is she serious?"

"That _can't _be her."

"I remember her being more brave."

"She looks innocent enough!"

"Now that you're cornered, with no brother to save you, what're you gonna do? You'll pay for what you did…"

"Wh-what?! I didn't do anything! Please! J-Just hear me out!"

"I've had enough of this! It's time you got what you deserved."

"NO! PLEASE! STOP! I'M BEGGING Y.."

"**ENOUGH!**"

Everyone paused, then the whispers started again, more excited than before.

"It's proof then!"

"This is her!"

"That's her grandma, right? It has to be her!"

The voice rang out again, "**DISRESPECTFUL BRATS!** Make way for your elder!"

It was an odd sight, as a line of people started to stumble away with looks of pain contorting their faces. As the person in the front of the crowd tried to scramble away from the elderly woman- she stepped out of the circle and hit the man on the foot with a oak staff twice her size. Ignoring the man's howls of pain, she made her way toward the two in the middle. The black-haired man looked agitated.

"Look, you old hag, there's nothing you can do to stop m…"

"**IMPUDENT CHILD.** This is not my granddaughter."

Complete silence followed these words.

"Come dearie. I'm afraid you've been involved in a mix-up of sorts… Oh know sweetie don't cry! It's not your fault!"

Nami had indeed begun to tear up, her savior had arrived in the form of a two-foot tall crippled old lady with a walking stick. But she didn't complain- because if this old woman hadn't showed up, she could have died.

Allowing this elderly woman to lead her out of the crowd, Nami followed her hero to a small alley off the side of the road. The woman reached up and opened the door skillfully with the tip of her cane. The two of them entered a dark and dusty old room- the furniture all covered in plastic, cardboard boxes piled in the corner, and a small hallway leading off to the left. Nami's eyes wandered around the decrepit area in awe.

"Um… excuse me… do you live here?"

"…yes… please make yourself comfortable." The old lady said, tone noticeably softer than what she used outside. The old lady entered the room and gestured to a couch covered in white plastic. Nami watched as the elder shuffled off into another room. It was quiet, except for the light clattering coming from a different room.

Nami noticed a few things about this room, the fact that it had no windows, the fact that there were no pictures or books, and the fact that it smelled faintly of rotten cheese. There was also the unusual fact that not only the fabric objects were covered in plastic- but wooden things as well. The table in front of her, the cabinets, drawers, desks, everything. Which is why a small box on the other side of the room caught her eye. The only thing other than the floor that was not covered in plastic, or dust.

Suddenly, her eyes seemed to change, as her money hungry side got the best of her manners. The navigator made her way slowly over to the chest- and going closer she noticed a skull with a crown carved immaculately on the top of it.

Curiosity and greed coursing through her veins- Nami threw open the chest easily. A small toy pirate ship rose and fell on the paper waves- as tiny trumpets played a tune to an unknown song. Nami watched in disappointment as a bearded pirate stood frozen on the deck of this ship- sword pointed at the cobweb-ridden ceiling.

'Pheh. A music box.'

"I see you've found her treasure." Spoke a calm voice directly behind her.

Nami, being Nami, jumped and let out a small scream.

"Calm down, girlie. You needn't make a fuss." Said the small lady, making her way to a lounge chair across from the couch. Perching herself upon it with difficulty, she gestured to the couch across from her.

Nami, still shaking from her last surprise, forgot to close the box and made her way immediately over to sit upon the couch again.

Which is when she noticed the tea set.

A small plate was set in front of her, with tea already steaming inside a mug. The redhead heard the slow sipping of the woman across from her- and decidedly picked up her own cup.

A solemn look shaded the wrinkles on the grandmother's face. And she set down her mug carefully on the plate she held in her other hand. Nami, noticing the sudden atmosphere change, set hers down as well.

"Rudder." Said the woman in all seriousness.

If Nami had been expecting something, it had not been that.

"Um.. .ex.. excuse me?" stuttered the young navigator- looking extremely bewildered.

"Rudder. It's what he used to call her."

"Sorry, who used to call who…?"

"A brother, to his younger sister."

"And who would…"

"**Silence, child!** Let me tell my story!" snapped the elder suddenly.

Nami nodded vigorously and backed further into the couch.

"There was a small girl who lived in this town years ago. This lively child was happily risen by her elder brother. Both orphaned at young ages- the boy took it upon himself to raise his baby sister. They loved each other dearly- but the boy had his dreams to chase…" at this, the woman paused, took another sip of tea, and set it back down, "he wanted to be a pirate. Foolish boy."

Nami audibly gasped, but didn't see any point in the tale so far, so she opened her mouth to speak.

"Quiet! You have to know!"

Her mouth snapped shut.

"The tiny girl was barely four when her brother turned eighteen. And this is when he decided to start a crew. He disappeared one day- abandoning his sister for an entire year."

"What happened to he…"

"**Insolence!** Stop speaking out of turn and I'll tell you."

She took another slow sip of tea.

"The girl was placed in my care. And I proceeded to raise her in his absence. After all… that would be my duty as her grandmother."

"GRANDMOTHER?!"

This time, the elderly woman didn't snap at her.

"Yes… my adorable grandchild would ask every day. Ask where he went. When he would be back. It was heart-wrenching. The town resented our entire family for even being related to the 'traitor,' as they called him. I was forced to board up the windows- since they were broken every day. By this time, the young idiot had made a name for himself in the Grand Line. Which made our family all the more condemned. It was absolutely terrible for the child- who had figured something was wrong. She started to stay quiet, her smiles came out fake, and she began to lose faith in her brother's return. But on her fifth birthday- her brother made an entrance into our small apartment." A smile crept over the features of the old grandmother's face and she took another sip of tea.

"He came in singing her favorite pirate song, 'The Pirate King.' And he gave her a small teddy bear and that music box. He told her outrageous stories of which I strongly disapproved- but the smile on her face was so pure and delighted- I couldn't bring myself stop him."

Nami stayed in shocked silence as the woman drank from the mug again before continuing.

"She keeps the bear with her wherever she goes. But left the box here with me when she left."

"'Left'…? But why?" Nami said, genuinely interested now.

"Well, for the longest time I kept her from going outside. There were savages waiting out there after all. Claiming that her brother was a rogue and a traitor. And the day he left again, I knew things would change."

She paused there, looking sadly into her tea cup, obviously seeing something Nami could not.

"She wanted to become a pirate."

Here, Nami gasped again.

"She left without a word's notice. I came back from the shop one day- and found she had gone. And all that she left behind was the music box. She was five."

"And what happened to her? What does this have to do with what happened today?!"

"I'm getting there. Now, this particular girl had a distinct appearance compared to other folks, her and her brother. But, as I heard from rumors, she had chosen to hide this."

"Hide…? What did she do?"

"Well… her brother… I think he said something to her before he left. At the time… I had left the room to get out the cookies from the oven- couldn't just let him leave without my special oatmeal cookies, you know- the girl had told him all about her plans to become a pirate. And do you know what he said?"

Her eyes shadowed over, as she sipped once more. Nami sucked in a breath.

"He told her… 'girls can't be pirates. Give up.' Her own role model… telling her to give up! Well, naturally, it had been devastating for her. That night, she cried dreadfully- not even bothering to see her own kin off! And the day after that- she was gone. Of course, weeks past with no word. But soon, rumors were flying around town like wildfire about how the girl would beat up everyone who came within her sights. She was ridiculed, spit upon, chased, and she fought men five times her size. She had to steal and fight in order to survive. Don't get me wrong- the bandages are part of her disguise- but many of those bandages are necessary. Anyway, her consistent fighting is why people are scared of her, why they set sponges out, why they thought you were her… they haven't seen what she really looks like for awhile. But they know she had red hair. Naturally, when they saw you, they wanted to unleash their wrath on you as payback- because there aren't any redheads around here."

At this, she put her mug down on the plate carefully, jumped off the chair, and placed the dish back on the platter. Nami's cup sat on the table, long forgotten.

"You may ask questions now."

Letting out a long breath, Nami started.

"What happened to the girl?!"

"Why, haven't you realized? She's on your ship right now."

"EH?!" screamed Nami, leaping up from her seat on the couch.

"Settle down, settle down! That ridiculous sombrero-wearer. She uses that get-up to mask her gender. **Silly child!**"

"Y-You mean ROY?!"

"**FOOLISH GIRL!** Her name is 'Rose.' Do you think she'd go by that name if she was trying to be a boy?!"

"I.. I guess not…"

The old woman shook her head disapprovingly.

"Honestly. That girl. Growing up the way she did, I'm surprised she's not insane."

"Huh?"

"Well, for one, her view of her brother came distorted over the years. And I think she's come to hate him now, no matter how close they were before, she has completely forgotten. And she was bullied by the town all her life. She had no true childhood. No authority figures. Not to mention that Devil's fruit she ate…"

"DEVIL'S FRUIT?!"

"Ever wonder why the people of this town set out sponges in front of their doors?"

"I thought it was strange…" admitted Nami.

"She can control water. And turn into water. She stole, made her own house, got bullied, and fought all on her own. I wouldn't be surprised if her opinion of people has changed."

"Sounds like she had it tough… But I saw her laughing with someone today."

"Y-Y-Y-YOU DID?!"

The redhead leapt in surprise at the woman's outburst.

"Y-Y-YES! Down by the docks! There was this boy, who also joined our crew!"

"She has a friend?! Oh thank goodness… I was afraid she had forgotten how to laugh… But, growing up with _that _boy, I guess it was pretty hard."

There was a moment of silence, before Nami felt the need to know one more thing.

"Sorry to ask… But who was the brother?"

"Shanks," said the woman emotionlessly, "that lazy boy gallivanting in who knows where with that silly little straw hat of his…"

"Shanks?! The infamous pirate, Red-haired Shanks?! HIM!?"

"That's what I said, isn't it?"

"That was her brother?!" said Nami in a voice an octave higher than her normal one.

"_Yes. _You realize if you know him, right? He's not the type of person to tell someone that… But…" She picked up the tea tray after placing Nami's cup tenderly upon it, and turned her back on the redhead, "he loved her. And as every person should very well know… The sea is a dangerous place, and he didn't want his precious sister out there in such danger. She just thought… That he didn't want her to be happy. Or that he was underestimating her skill. Yes… Something along those lines…" The elderly woman began to hobble her way out of the room.

She paused, turned her head slightly, and said "mind bringing that music box to the girl? It means a lot to her… And it would mean a lot to me… Repayment, so to speak?"

Nami snapped out of her daze, and nodded hastily. The old woman smiled.

"Thank you," she stated simply, and began walking again.

"W-wait! One more thing! Why did you tell me all this?!"

"Having a woman crewmate on her side will help her greatly. When she sees you on the crew… she'll have second thoughts about hiding her gender."

"But.. ma'am, I'm only a co-operator. I can't do that."

The woman merely chuckled, before disappearing into the dark hallway.

"In time, we shall see. Farewell, Nami. Tell my idiot granddaughter that I said 'hello.'

And with that, Nami was left in a dark and musty house, staring after the chuckling woman, with the complete opposite face she was wearing only twenty minutes earlier in the streets.

Poor Nami, even without the boys, her day gets ruined.

* * *

Meanwhile, on one of our favorite ships in the East Blue, a certain chaos had been unleashed- courtesy of a new member of the Strawhat crew.

Rose wondered solemnly as she shifted her weight from her left to right foot- how on **_Earth _**she had gotten herself into this situation so quickly.

The young teen didn't have a copy of '**Joining a Pirate Crew: What Not to Do**' on hand, so she surely was not expected to know what NOT to do when joining a pirate crew.

Which, she guessed, is how she found herself in her current situation- and cursed the fact that she had not taken the initiative to go to a library and check out such a book.

The girl's head drooped hopelessly.

'I blame the ketchup.'

A loud sound erupted from right beside her- making her jump nearly ten feet in the air.

"STAY STILL!" screamed an overly angry captain, chasing down his new crewmate.

"STAY AWAY FROM ME!" yelled the girl frantically over her shoulder- not pausing in her desperate dash around the entire ship.

"**LUFFY STOP BREAKING THE SHIP!**" bellowed the sharpshooter in obvious distress- and louder than both of the other's yells combined.

"Sorry, Usopp!" said Luffy apologetically as he sprinted past him mid-deck. Then he paused, and stared at the long-nosed boy for a second.

"USOPP! YOU'RE OK!"

"YES LUFFY, I'M FINE! Just stop breaking the ship!"

"I'll try!" said the boy with a smile, running once more after his target, but noticeably far behind now.

Streams of anime tears ran across the paper-thin bandages strewn across the unfortunate teen's face.

'Why me?'

"**LUFFY! NO! YOU MIGHT BREAK S-**"

A sort of battle cry sounded behind the panicked girl- and she attempted to run faster- letting out a scream of her own.

She turned a corner around some mikan trees just as the sound of splitting wood once again echoed through the harbor.

The boy had literally launched himself at the fleeing girl- headfirst.

"**LUFFY!**" shouted Usopp angrily- but with a hint of concern as he rushed over to that side of the ship.

'Saved!' thought Rose joyfully, diving into the trees and taking refuge there.

Out of the falling pieces of wood and dust- Luffy emerged with a hand on his straw hat.

"Where'd he go? I'll beat him up!" he said, narrowing his eyes and looking around deck- completely ignoring the persistent scolding of his long-nosed crewmate.

"....LP ME CLEAN THIS U- OI LUFFY!? ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!!?"

"Where did that guy go?!" said Luffy, springing to his feet.

"How should I know?! Probably hiding from you! Now help me fix the ship!"

"Thanks, Usopp!" Luffy said, smiling again, and heading off to look for the hiding place.

Usopp was left staring wordlessly at his retreating back- then grumbled furiously, turning to the wrecked piece of ship.

The sound of the captain's sandals slapping against wood faded- and Rose felt it safe to crawl out from her hiding place.

"Thanks, Usopp! You saved me!" said Rose, patting the sniper unexpectedly on his back.

He trembled slightly- and he jumped, turning around as he did so, landing in an off-looking kung-fu position on one foot.

Rose laughed lightly at him.

"Sorry! Didn't mean to surpri-"

"**_You..._**"

Both Usopp and Rose jumped at the sudden voice whispering venomously behind them.

The sharpshooter- being the brave and and daring man he was- hid behind Rose upon seeing who it was.

"N-Nami!" he said nervously- visibly shaking- "How was your t-trip?"

The poncho-wearer chose this point to turn around- finding a demonic-looking redhead- a dark sort of aura flowing from her.

'She's scarier than any man I've ever fought...'

The navigator began advancing- fist raised and shaking in front of her shadowed eyes.

"While you were all off destroying the ship..."

"That was Luffy!" interjected Usopp- before disappearing behind Rose again.

Nami pretended not to hear him and continued her slow yet deadly steps toward the pair. Rose unconsciously took a step back.

"I was shot at by someone in town. I could have _died_, you see."

'I'd prefer Luffy to her right now!' thought the water user desperately, then she froze.

"Wait... you got shot at?" said Rose blankly, forgetting the situation.

"Yes..." Nami spoke between grinding teeth, and now, right in front of them, she lifted her fist.

"EEK! SPARE ME!" shrieked Rose, suddenly aware of the situation, and throwing her arms in front of her face whilst closing her eyes.

One of the wrists shielding her from getting pummeled was grabbed gently.

"...Eh?" said the teen cautiously- opening one eye and surprised she wasn't dead.

"We need to talk."

"W-we?" said Rose weakly- eye twitching.

"Yes, we. Oh but first..."

She relinquished her hold on the sombero-bearer wrist- made her way around the girl to a relieved Usopp- and proceeded to beat him to a pulp.

"YOU! Get that idiot captain and swordsman to help you clean up and repair the ship! We're setting sail soon!"

"Yes Nami. Sorry Nami. We'll get right on it Nami." said the poor sniper- face full of bruises and bumps.

The navigator released the boy's collar and let him slump to the ground- turning back to a trembling witness.

"Ready to talk?"

'No. No I'm not. I prefer life.'

Taking the silence as a yes, her wrist was yet again snatched, and she found herself being dragged rather roughly towards the kitchen.

As her impending doom grew closer with every tug and yank- the waterworks started automatically- as the anime tears streamed down her face for what seemed the thirtieth time today.

'I've gone and joined a crew of psychos!' thought a distressed girl, as the door to her execution platform swung open.

* * *

**End of Chapter 3. **

That was the worst ending ever. :| HAHA ANDY. YOU WERE HARDLY IN THIS CHAPTER.

Andy: Go die.

Emma: You're just jealous of my main character-ness.

ANYWAY. Three days! Or sooner, if I feel inspired! Really, much thanks to LuffyxRuby for the review! I really appreciate it! Since it was my first one EVER! Just feel happy I extended this chapter by at least 500 words. I felt the need to include Luffy. NO. This is NOT a fic about instant love or love at first sight. It will take TIME. It will probably be farrrrrrr into the story before even one romantic feeling pops into Rose's head! She may even fall for _someone else _first! Which is why humor is an included topic. Anyway, I love you all, and I hope you enjoyed reading this!

Andy: You talk too much. -Looks back down at manga.-

Emma: I will burn that manga into a thousand tiny toasty tidbits.

Andy: -Hiss.-

Emma: Yeah, well. I hope to see you all again in three days! Have a nice day!

Andy: Pffttt. Lame.

Emma: -Gets out flamethrower.-


End file.
